When you think of clutter you probably think of “stuff”…lots of stuff that fills your closets and cabinets and lots of stuff that covers your desk, your counters and even your floor. Too much stuff that you don’t need or don’t want.
So how do you get rid of all this clutter? Do you just stock up on more plastic storage bins to organize the stuff? If your answer is yes…does this approach work? Does the clutter disappear? Or does the clutter go away for a few hours or a few days and then come back multiplied? Do you feel that despite your attempts to clear the clutter, you never seem like you are getting anywhere?
Well, maybe you’re not getting anywhere because you’re trying to fix the wrong problem the wrong way. Because the clutter doesn’t start on your desk or in your closet. The clutter starts inside of you. If you realize that your exterior world is a reflection – a mirror – of your interior world, you will finally be able to clear the clutter in your life.
Here are 3 tips to clear your clutter from the inside out.
1. Start with the Mirrors. Don’t just dive into the first pile of “stuff” you see on the floor. First, take a look around your home to see what seems cluttered. Accept that the clutter is there to teach you something valuable. Then answer this question in a journal: “If my environment were a reflection – or mirror – of what is going on in my head and in my life, what would it be saying?”. Do you have multiple unfinished projects on your desk? Perhaps this reflects a fear of making decisions. Do you have piles of clothes covering every surface in your bedroom? Perhaps this reflects a fear of intimacy. Write down everything you think of, regardless of how crazy it seems.
2. Identify Something Small. Now pick one small cluttered area of your home to address first. Not a whole floor or a whole room…one small area…a closet shelf, a drawer…even a small counter surface. Set a timer for 20 minutes, and using a pad of paper, write down the items you see in that small area and rate each item on a scale of one to three: 1-I love it or absolutely need it, 2-I’m not sure if I love it or need it, 3-I don’t love it or don’t need it anymore. Now look at the items you gave a “3” and answer the following question in your journal: “If eliminating these things from my life would make space for something more important, what would I want?”. Perhaps you are looking at your home office desk and decide that multiple cups of pens and pencils, two staplers, and the piles of papers and mail scattered across your desk make it difficult for you to concentrate on writing your blog. You might decide that you would eliminate many of these items from your desk to make to room express your full creative potential. Remember, when you remove something from your life that no longer serves you, you make room for something better and new.
3. Sort It. Clear It. Polish It. Now that you’ve identified what you will gain in your life by making space, you are ready to act. Schedule 30 minutes a day to tackle your “small area” and make it a non-negotiable appointment on your calendar. Get three empty boxes and label them “Remove”, “Repair”, and “Recycle”. Now start sorting. Consider every item that is in your “small area” and ask yourself if you love it or need it. If the answer is no, then ask yourself if you can repair it so you can love it/use it again or if you can recycle it so someone else can love it/use it. If you can’t repair it or recycle it, then remove it to the trash. Once you have sorted everything into your three boxes, clear the items out of your home. Take your “remove” items to the trash, get your “repair” items fixed and donate, give-away or sell your “recycle” items. Now that you have cleared out everything that is no longer adding value to your life, it’s time to “polish” and beautifully arrange the things that are left. When you polish something, you give it a glow and a feeling of quality and importance. Take the time to make your things beautiful and easily accessible so they support your life and delight your senses.
By clearing your clutter from the inside out, you remove the attachments to things from the past that no longer serve you that must be released in order to create the space for change.
That’s your Rx for today. Be well.
-Dr. Avanti
Your Daily Rx 